Stabilization of motor fuels



Patented Apr. 4, 1944 STABILIZATION OF-MOTOB FUELS Loran 0. Burton, Bellevllle, N. 1., assignor to Na-.

tional Oil Products Company, Harrison, N. 1., a corporation of New Jersey No Drawing. Application June 21. 1941, Serial No. 389,212

1. Claims.

This invention relates in general to the treatment of motor fuels, more particularly to the treatment of gasoline to prevent deteriorative changes in appearance and quality.

It is well known that gasoline, particularly gasoline produced by a cracking process or containing leaded compounds added to improve the anti-knock value, tends to deteriorate on storage or when heated or exposed to light. Various components of the gasoline tend to change in compostion and cause cloudiness, gum formation and other undesirable features. Treatments have been proposed for removing some of the components responsible for these undesirable changes, but as such treatments are frequently costly and cumbersome, much worlr has been done in an attempt to develop gasoline-soluble antioxidant materials which may be added to the gasoline to protect it from these deteriorative changes. and eliminate the necessity for chemical treatments to remove the components responsible for the changes.-

In carrying out experiments relating to the solvent extraction of fatty materials, I have found that by treating natural antioxidant-containing fatty materials with certain types of organic solvents, highly potent extracts containing the majority of the natural antioxidants of the fatty material concentrated therein may be obtained. Thus I have found that a highly potent antioxidant extract may be obtained from a natural antioxidant-containing vegetable or fish oil by contacting said oil with a suitable solvent at room temperature or above such that at least the major portion of the oil is miscible with the solvent and then cooling the mixture to a temperature within the range of 0 C. to

"I0-' 0., whereby a solvent layer containing the are all liquid organic compounds having the properties of being substantially miscible with fatty oils at temperatures above room temperature and partially immiscible therewith at temperatures substantially below room temperature; experiments in this connection have shown that solvents of this class may be used generally in scrlbedand claimed in copendins application Se- I rial No. 397,547, filed June 11, 1941. For further information concerning these processes reference desired antioxidant extract separates. Among the solvents which were found to be particularly suitable for use in this process are those listed Table I 1. Aliphatic and alicyclic monohydroxy alcohols containing from 8 tot carbon atoms.

8 carbon atoms.

It will be noted that these preferred solvents in the table below:

may be had to the above-identified applications.

It is the object of this invention-to provide a hydrocarbon motor fuel of improved stability.

It is also the object of this invention to treat anti-knock gasolines so as to retard development of cloudiness and gum formation therein, and loss of anti-knock value.

I have found that the above and other objects of the invention may be realized by the addition to a hydrocarbon motor fuel of a relatively small amount of a natural antioxidant concentrate produced in accordance with either of the hereinabove identified inventions, or an antioxidant concentrate similar to those produced by the aforementioned processes, but produced by other processes.

Any gasoline, particularly gasoline produced by any of the numerous cracking processes or gasoline-containing leaded compounds, e. g.. tetra ethyl lead, may be protected from deterlorative changes by the incorporationtherein of antioxidant fractions produced in accordance with the process of either of the above identified inventions. Motor fuels suitable for use in Diesel engines may also be protected from deteriorative oxidativechanges by the use of such antioxidano fractions. I

These antioxidant fractions may well be used alone for improving the stability oi motor fuels; however, if desired, they may be used in conjunction with other additives which are incorporatedinto gasoline for preventing deteriorative changes inits ap arance'and quality. Compounds which may be used in admixture with my duced from either soybean oil, wheat germ oil,

corn germ oil, cotton seed oil, corn oil, sesame oil, etc., or any mixture of these oils, or antioxidant fractions produced from oil-bearing wheat germ meal, corn germ ,meal, soybean meal, etc. It is to be understood, however, that similar antioxidant fractions prepared from any animal or vegetable oil or meal may be used. Furthermore, it is to be understood that this invention also covers the use of antioxidant concentrates similar to those produced by the processes oi the two hereinabove identified inventions, but produced by other processes.

Gasoline may be treated by the process of :my invention by admixing an antioxidant fraction prepared as described with the gasoline to be stablized. The particular amount of the antioxidant to be used will depend upon the type oi gasoline to be treated and the type of deteriora-- tion to be prevented. For example, amounts as low as 0.01% are suiiicient to prevent the [development of cloudiness in gasoline. In most cases amounts between about 0.1% and about 0.01% or lower are sufiicient to protect the gasoline irom deteriorative changes aiiecting its :appearance and quality. The necessary amounts to be used may readily be determined by carrying out small scale laboratory tests on the gasoline to be treated.

The natural antioxidant fractions used in the process oi my invention in addition to being more effective in preventing deteriorative changes than many of the materials now being used for such purposes have other distinct advantages over many or these materials. For example, the natural antioxidant fractions are readily soluble in gasoline, but insoluble in water. This is a distinct advantage as the condensation-water which usually occurs in-gasolinestorage tanks cannot preferentially dissolve out the antioxidants and carry them down from the gasoline, and thus cause a substantial reduction of their inhibiting effect, as is the case with a number of additives which have been heretofore'in'troduced for inhibiting deteriorative changes in gasoline. Also since these antioxidant fractions are gasoline-soluble, suflicient amounts of them to be readily efiective may easily be incorporated into the gasoline. V

As yet the exact chemical composition of the antioxidant fractions produced by the processes of the hereinabove identified inventions has not been determined. However, it appears that these antioxidant compositions are not composed of just one or two antioxidant principles, but rather are complex mixtures containing. several antioxidant principles. Because of the complexity of these materials, they are of particular value in that they arethus adapted for protecting gasoline from more than one type oi deteriora I tive change.

It is to be understood that the term hydrocarbon motor'fuel as used in the specification and claims includes both gasoline and Diesel motor fuels. The expression "gasoline" is employed in the appended claims in a generic sense m assure,

include cracked gasoline, anti-knock gasolines and the like.

This application is a continuation-impart of copending application Serial No. 397,547, filed June 11,-194l.

Since certain changes in-oarrying out the above process and certain modifications in the compositions which embody the invention may be made without departing from its scope, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting. sense. The amounts of antioxidant iraction which may be used are not limited to those which have been cited as bein useful. One skilled in the art will obviously vary the amounts used so as to obtain the optimum results.

- It i also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention, which as a matter of language might be said to fall therebetween.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

i. A hydrocarbon motor fuel stabilized by the presence therein oi a natural antioxidant con-' centrate prepared by contacting a natural antioxidant-containing materialselected from the.

group consisting of vegetable oils and vegetable oil-bearing solids at a temperature above room temperature with a solvent selected irom Table I, cooling the mass to a temperature within the range or ii" C. to --'I9 0. whereby layers are formed, separating the solvent layer from the insoluble residue and removing the extracted natural antioxidant concentrate from the solvent.

2. A hydrocarbon motor fuel stabilized by the presence therein of a natural antioxidant concentrate prepared by contacting a natural antioxidant-containing material selected from the group consisting of vegetable oils and vegetable oil-bearing solids at a temperature above room temperature with isopropanol, cooling the mass to a temperature within the range of 0 C. to '70 C. whereby layers are formed, separating the isopropanol layer from the insoluble residue and removing the extracted natural antioxidant concentrate from the isopropanol.

3. Gasoline stabilized by the presence therein of a natural antioxidant concentrate prepared by contacting a natural antioxidant-containing material selected from the group consisting of vegetable oils andjvegetable oil-bearing solids at a temperatureabove room temperature with a solvent selected iromTable I, cooling the mass to a temperature within the range of 0 C. to --'70 0. whereby layers are formed, separating the solvent layer from the insoluble residue and removing the extracted natural antioxidant concentrate from the solvent.

4. Gasoline stabilized by the presence therein 0! a natural antioxidant concentrate prepared by contacting a natural antioxidant-containing material selected from the group consisting of vegetable oils and vegetable oil-bearing solids at A hydrocarbon motor fuel stabilized by the presence therein of a natural antioxidant concentrate prepared by contacting a natural antioxidant-containing wheat germ oil at a temperature above room temperature with a solvent selected from Table I, cooling the mass to a temperature within the range of 0 C. to -'70 whereby layers are formed, separating the solvent layer from the insoluble residue and removing the extracted natural antioxidant-concentrate from the solvent.

6. A hydrocarbon motor fuel stabilized by the presence therein of anatural antioxidant concentrate prepared by contacting a natural antioxidant-containing wheat germ oil at a temperature above room temperature with isopropanol, cooling the mass to a temperature within the range of 0 C. to 70 whereby layers are formed, separating the isopropanol layer from the insoluble residue and removing the extracted natural antioxidant concentrate from the isopropanol. v

7. A hydrocarbon motor fuel stabilized by the presence therein of a natural antioxidant concentrate prepared by contacting a natural anti.- oxidant-containing corn germ oil at a temperature above room temperature with a solvent selected fromTable I, cooling the mass to a temperature within the range of 0 C. to '70 where- .by layers are formed, separating the solvent layer from the insoluble residue and removing the extracted natural antioxidant concentrate from the solvent.

9. A hydrocarbon motor fuel stabilized by the presence therein of a natural antioxidant concentrate prepared by contacting a natural antioxidant-containing soybean oil at a temperature above room temperature with a solvent v selected from Table I, cooling the mass to a temperature within the range of 0 C. to -'I0 C. whereby layers are formed, separating the solvent layer from the insoluble residue and removing the extracted natural antioxidant concentrate from the solvent.

10. A hydrocarbon motor fuel stabilized by the presence therein of a natural antioxidant con- 

